Rabbit in the Moon, Sky Room and the Standard Hotel Rooftop

The Nightlife Report for June 17, 2010
Compiled by Gamal Hennessy

…I hunt down the nightlife news so you don’t have to…

Opening
Rabbit in the Moon
(Thrillist)
A new gastropub has hopped into the Village (sorry, I had to throw in that pun). Sample the foie gras with strawberry gastrique before the NYU kids come back for the fall semester and discover this place.

Standard Rooftop
(Urban Daddy)
Boom Boom Room, the club of the moment nestled inside the Standard Hotel, is opening up its rooftop this week. If you consider that Boom Boom is one of the hardest doors in the city right now and rooftop bars are typically hard to get into during the summer anyway, then you should be very proud of yourself if you get to enjoy a summer sunset here.

Sky Room
(Urban Daddy)
If you can’t get into the Standard rooftop, and you’ve had enough of Hudson Terrace or the Empire rooftop, head over to Times Square. Go into the Marriott Marquis before the park in the middle of Broadway and the tourists throngs piss you off too much, skip the revolving bar and visit this new rooftop lounge that will give you great views of everything in the city, except those people down below sitting in the middle of the street.

Government
NYC Sets Up Community Tools for Self Organizing
(Business Wire)
Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer is introducing a new online system that will help community boards and other citizens get access to and get involved with local government. This could make it even easier for “block associations” and community boards to band together to put pressure on local operators, but it can also be a way for nightlife supporters to get together and prove that not everyone in New York wants all the clubs closed.

Management
Trends in Successful Nightlife Operations
(Good Night Mr. Lewis)
I’ve already pointed out that various economic and political pressures on nightlife operators are forcing them to alter their business models and adapt to the changing times. Steve Lewis touches on a few of the major trends that have taken hold in the past few years including increased food service, nightlife/ hotel alliances, all digital DJ booths and guest list only events. The movement toward smaller multi purpose venues could be another sign of the end of big Pacha/ Santos type clubs in New York until someone can come up with a business model that can support it.


Have fun
Gamal

Boom Boom Room, Pain Killer and Rooftop Bars

The Nightlife Report for April 16, 2010

…I hunt down the nightlife news so you don’t have to…

Changes
Boom Boom
The very exclusive (although it claims not to be) lounge inside the Standard Hotel recently got conditional approval from the local CB to allow dancing inside the venue. Under the condition that the space is not “trying to become a club” then the DJ can drop tunes more conducive to dancing. I understand that the impact of the cabaret law is a complex issue, but the politics of dancing always disgusts me. The concept that a political body claims to have the right or authority to say who can and cannot gyrate in close proximity to members of the opposite (or same depending on the venue) sex is appalling. Luckily, the dance police and members of the community board can’t even get into the Boom Boom Room, so they won’t know we are dancing until they see the Facebook photos.

Coming Soon
Pain Killer
The former East Side Company space is re-inventing itself as a tiki bar/ speakeasy and opening next week. With veterans from the Little Branch, Milk and Honey and Dutch Kills school of cocktails this old space will try to bring a new twist to the cocktail lounge formula. Look for a full review here soon.

Opinion
Bloomberg Achieves High Approval Rating
According to a Marist poll, 38% of New Yorkers feel that Mayor Bloomberg is the best mayor that the city has had since 1980. People polled cited improved quality of life, security and cleaner streets. While it is a subjective finding, nightlife natives know that Bloomberg has built part of his legacy by turning a blind eye to our industry. His zoning practices that pit residents against operators, his smoking ban that exponentially increased the noise issue, his failure to effectively deal with the cabaret law and the oppressive use of city agencies against venues are all indications that Marist didn’t poll many nightlife operators when they decided to conduct this survey.

Trend
Rooftop Bars
This is the third or fourth spring of the roof top bar in NYC. We have them downtown (Above Allen) in the Meatpacking District (Provocateur) on the West Side (Hudson Terrace) in Midtown (Empire Hotel and on the East Side (Mad 46). Zagat has recently put together a list of the bars with retractable roofs so you can live the high life rain or shine (just as long as you can pay for the cocktails. Retractable roofs are not cheap.)

Have fun.
G

Join us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
Sign up for the Insider Newsletter

Bar Seven Five, Beatrice, Boom Boom Room, and the Roxy

The New York Nights Club Report for January 14, 2010
Compiled by Gamal Hennessy

…I hunt down the nightlife news so you don’t have to…

Public Service Announcement
Haitian Earthquake Donations
Nightlife Media is making a cash donation on behalf of Haitian earthquake victims through the International Red Cross. The money will be used to provide medical aid for survivors, identify the dead and restore contacts between family members separated because of the earthquake. If you'd also like to make a donation, please visit the IRC website.

Controversy
Beatrice vs. the Boom Boom Room
(Eater)
The club of the moment, A-list sub culture is gearing up for a little friendly competition. Boom Boom Room has been at the top of this scene for about a year now. Beatrice used to draw the same crowd before an angry CB shut them down, but the owners are planning to make a comeback and reclaim their market share. Will this struggle lead to more creativity and diversity in this market are there enough exclusive patrons to maintain the status quo?

Awards
2010 Club & Bar Finalists
(Guest of a Guest)
Several NYC venues were named in this national competition, but New York didn’t have the representation that Vegas does. Maybe Sin City is doing something right when it comes to nightlife. Maybe they have ideas that we can steal, or at least borrow.

Coming Soon
Ace Hotel Speakeasy
(Black Book)
Get a first look at the space that is so secret the owner sometimes forgets where it is.

The Roxy?
(Chelsea Now)
It appears that the owners of Taj, Katra and Lepoard Lounge have plans for the space abandoned by the Roxy in 2007. Will this new group succeed where other attempts to reopen the space have failed?


Opening
Bar Seven Five
(Thrillist)
A cocktail bar without an actual bar opens up in the Financial District.

Have fun.
Gamal

Amity Hall, Boom Boom Room, No Name Bar and The Norry

The New York Nights Club Report for December 9, 2009
Compiled by Gamal Hennessy

I hunt down the nightlife news so you don’t have to…

Opening
Amity Hall
(Urban Daddy)
The Village gets a beer garden that has more in common with a cocktail lounge than a pub crawl destination.

The Norry at Kampuchea
(Martini Boys)
The LES gets a gastropub based on Cambodian street fare. That’s different even for New York.

Closing
No Name Bar
(Eater)
A fire has temporarily shut down this Flatiron watering hole.

Opinion
Boom Boom Room vs. Studio 54
(Guest of a Guest)
An operator from the Studio 54 era explains why the newest A list venue can’t have the same cache or energy as the legendary club.

Have fun.
Gamal